Around the world flight

Not sure where to post this but has anyone ever bought one of those around the world tickets where you can land a limited number of times around the world? We were thinking of flying to Australia and it is so expensive, I was wondering about going around the world which you pretty much have to do to get there anyway. In doing a little research I found that American Airlines with their %26quot;One World Alliance%26quot; is just a little more than our quoted price for Australia and we can land in 4 continents and in each one fly within that area 6 times. Of course, this makes for a long length of time. I%26#39;m just wondering if anyone out there has done this and what you thought about the experience. Thanks. Linda

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Hi Linda.

Yes, I%26#39;ve done something like this. There are now a number of companies in the uk who will happily put packages together for you. Personally I feel that for a first time trip of this nature I would pay a little extra so that all my flights and accommodation were pre-booked. In 28 days I visited Hong Kong, Great Barrier Reef 3 day cruise, Alice Springs, Sydney, Fiji and San Francisco, and I wouln%26#39;t have changed a thing!

You have to carefully balance trips like this because you do not want to spend too much time on the plane.

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Just curious - what do you call %26#39;expensive%26#39; Linda?

To go to Paris from Sydney and return we pay up to AUD$2,700, or(very) roughly 1620 euros, in peak season. The lowest possible is around AUD$1700 or 1020 euros if you go in the dead of the Paris winter. Are the fares similar in price if bought in France or do you get better/worse deals?

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Well, out of curiosity I just checked on opodo.fr, and the CDG-Sydney Jan tickets go for about € 1,100 (Emirates), then for € 100 more you get Cathay, Thai, BA. For August, count on € 1,500 to 1,800 (but it%26#39;s very early days, I would suspect that you should add 30 % if you book only a few months ahead). These prices are all taxes included.

Which is kinda cheap, if you consider that flying to Brazil or Argentina, %26quot;only%26quot; 12 to 13 hours, will cost you at least as much.

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Bob, those prices are amazingly similar, however it is really odd that Europeans get the cheaper flights out here during OUR summer - ie, the better time to come. Peak/low seasons must be based on the northern hemisphere travel patterns rather than on the desirability of the season at your destination???

Linda, while I%26#39;ve never done the round world flight, I always promise myself on return that NEXT time I%26#39;ll arrange to have more time so that I can break up the flights and not do the whole Europe-Australia trip in one go. Taking only one 8 - 12 hour leg at a time with at least a few days break is so much more manageable.

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I flew with Cathay Paris-Melbourne and Cairns-Paris in november 2003 for 1000 euros!

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CK, come to think of it, the price pattern is logical: airlines don%26#39;t care whether the weather is going to be nice or not at your destination. What they see is that in January people are less willing to travel, because there are no school holidays, they have spent money for Xmas... and it%26#39;s also the height of the business year, so companies are reluctant to let their employees go, especially for a lengthy holiday. And don%26#39;t forget that kids get a two week holiday in Feb/March and that families whose income would enable them to fly to Australia are also likely to rent a place in the Alps to ski. So, all in all, I guess it%26#39;s pretty low season. That said, with the 35 hour week and an average actual retirement age of 57 in France, planes are always full whatever the month!

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Anything over 1000 Euros is expensive to me. A call to one airlines for the cost to Australia from Paris was 1600 Euros. It is almost 800 Euros more for an around the world fare. If I%26#39;m going to go all the way to Australia, why not see some of Malasia, stop over in Hawaii to break up that long flight, stop in the States to see family and then go back to Paris? It sounds like an interesting interprise. I%26#39;m just wondering how exhausting it will be. I%26#39;d love to do it but don%26#39;t want to be gone longer than 2 months or so. Linda

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Lots of Aussies do the round world thing, Linda. I think that as long as you pace yourself while sightseeing it will be fine.

And arriving home after a mere 8 hour plane flight is so much easier, with less time zone adjustment than a 24 hour stretch.

The young lad in our office just got back from his year off travelling the world. He flew in from as close as Fiji and hit the deck running at the the office within a day or two of arrival. I, however, was wrecked for a few weeks following my 12 day trip to Paris - as I didn%26#39;t have the time to stop overnight on the way and had to do the flights straight through.

If you do end up going with the fares to Australia only, then a night or two in Asia as a stop over en route each way makes for a much less exhausting homecoming (but then add some accommodatin $$ so here we are back at the round world option again!).

There%26#39;s a number of long haul travellers on the Australia forum if you want to post your question there also.

Raphy I%26#39;m jealous of that price!!

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Wow, two months, !!!! I would love a two month holiday! I would think that is more then enough time to see three or four countries via the round the world flight, and not be too exhausted.

Lots of planning to do!